Netanyahu: Israel needs to be independent of US weapons producers

Israel’s prime minister reveals efforts by his government to end the IDF’s reliance on the US for munitions, following limits on arms sales imposed by the Biden administration.

By World Israel News Staff

Israel is drafting plans to dramatically increase its domestic munitions production capabilities, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed in an interview last Thursday.

Speaking with the Abu Ali Express Telegram channel, Netanyahu said that he is working to end Israel’s long-running dependence on foreign munitions manufacturing.

“The most important thing is that we want to strengthen our independent capabilities,” Netanyahu said.

“We’re making Israel even stronger, but the main point is that I want to eliminate, or at least significantly reduce, our dependence on external supplies — even from very good and truly loyal friends like the United States. I want us to be as self-reliant as possible.”

“It is called ‘peace through strength’,” Netanyahu continued.

“I’m currently holding discussions — including a very serious four-hour meeting yesterday — on our armament plans for the coming decade, and there are several components involved.”

“We need to signal to every actor in the region — friendly, less friendly and hostile — that Israel is the strongest country here.”

“That is the policy. It’s called ‘peace through strength’,” Netanyahu continued.

The move comes after Israel faced restrictions on weapons transfers from multiple countries during its war against the Hamas terror organization, including limits imposed by the two largest exporters to the IDF, the United States and Germany.

During the Biden administration, the White House barred the export of some bombs and equipment to convert standard aerial munitions into “smart bombs.”

While the limits were lifted by the Trump administration, Germany imposed its own restrictions earlier this year, before announcing they would be lifted on Monday.

Spain, Canada, and Britain have all imposed partial or total arms embargos on Israel.

In August 2024, it was reported that Israel’s Defense Ministry was already working to reduce Israeli reliance on the US for aerial munitions, and was working to establish production lines for indigenous bombs to replace the US-made MK-84.

Two months later, the Biden administration threatened to impose a sweeping arms embargo on Israel, should it fail to massively increase the flow of aid into Gaza.

This summer, the Defense Ministry inked a major procurement deal with Elbit Systems, an Israeli firm, for aerial munitions.

In September, the Israeli government established a new “Munitions Directorate” to draft plans for ending IDF dependence on foreign munitions.